


Feeling The Heat

by theianitor



Category: Formula 1 RPF
Genre: Abuse, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Established Relationship, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Mentions others, Prompt Fill, omega!Kimi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-30
Updated: 2016-08-03
Packaged: 2018-07-19 03:36:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 12,870
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7343170
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theianitor/pseuds/theianitor
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's important to pick the right mate, whether it's for a bond or just for a single heat - and going into heat during a race weekend is probably not a good thing... Just a look at a weekend with the alphas, betas, and omegas in the paddock.<br/>(inspired by a motorskink prompt)<br/>(now continues beyond that first weekend)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. 2015

**Author's Note:**

> Bear with me, it's my first ever attempt at anything to do with A/B/O. The prompt on motorskink read as follows:
> 
> "I'm craving an F1 omega!verse, in which omegas are pretty, bossy little things that when the heat kicks in become really picky when they have to chose the perfect mate. Alphas on the other hand are the macho-cliche impersonified, going bananas at the first a whiff of pheromones from an omega in heat. Please, please make it happen?  
> I'd prefer Kimi as the omega, but feel free to go nuts on the others. I'm looking forward young alpha drivers feeling torn between being insanely aroused and extremely terrified by the senior omegas."
> 
> I hope I got it somewhat right, it got quite a bit longer than I intended from the beginning...

-2015-

 

Felipe loves his life right now. He’s finally made it into Formula 1, and Formula 1 opens all kinds of doors. It is status, and on top of that he’s an alpha – better than the rest. His teammate, Marcus, is a typical beta-type: wholly uninteresting. Not powerful enough to be alpha, not pretty enough to be omega. Felipe is okay with it though. He’d rather be paired with someone like that than with some omega. Then again, having an omega teammate must have its perks too.

He wants to do the track walk alone, to have more time to think. Walking the track it’s vague at first, barely there, but it keeps getting stronger until he can’t ignore it. There’s someone around, an omega, he can smell it. Whoever they are, they smell good. Not in heat, not yet, but getting close. He picks up the pace a little. It must be someone who’s on track. It must be a crew-member from one of the other teams or something, maybe a marshal... the crews are usually so careful though; staff can’t be anywhere near their heats when there’s a race on, that could be very dangerous.

The thought of finding some sweet, nearing-heat omega bitch pushes everything else aside and the scent keeps getting stronger as he rounds the corner. He stops dead in his tracks. There’s someone sitting in the shade with their back to the barrier, drinking from a bottle of water. The smell is still not full-on omega in heat, but this figure in red is definitely the source. Felipe is staring and his feet move of their own accord, bringing him closer. He can feel himself tensing, back straightening up, puffing out his chest, and he’s glad there are no other alphas around to compete for the attention.

He stops a few feet away and can’t say why. Possibly surprise. He didn’t know, and if he’d have to guess which of the Ferrari drivers, if any, were omegas, he certainly wouldn’t have thought...

Kimi puts his water bottle down and looks up at the young Sauber-driver, an eyebrow quirking up over the rim of his sunglasses. Felipe has lost the ability to speak, he’s just staring. The Finn can definitely smell him, smell his hormones going. The promise of a near-heat omega has got him all fired up and it’s rather obvious at this point. Felipe bites his lip. Why does he feel nervous?! Kimi removes his sunglasses and looks at the younger man but his face expresses nothing. If anything he looks bored.

Felipe swears he can feel the cold blue eyes on him and it’s like being stabbed with icicles. Kimi’s eyes shift unashamedly from Felipe’s eyes down to his crotch, and then back up to his eyes again. He rolls his eyes and lets out a short snort and then turns away, sliding his glasses back on and shutting the outside world out completely. Felipe doesn’t think he’s ever felt more thoroughly rejected as he slinks away, continuing down the track.

 

\--

 

“Who’s going into heat?! I can’t fucking think!” Will sets his lunch tray down with a bang.

“Probably one of the rookies, they’re young enough to not have a handle on that just yet,” Jenson replies, still eating.

“Probably Nico, he doesn’t care about keeping himself right.” Lewis keeps his head down, focusing on his food, but the smell has started to get to him too and he’s not so much eating as stabbing his lunch to smaller pieces.

“It’s not Nico.” Jenson states with certainty.

“And you’d know that, wouldn’t you?” Lewis bristles.

“Well... as a matter of fact, yes, I would.” Now Jenson looks up and smiles at Lewis in a condescending way. It’s no secret Nico frequently spends his heats with Jenson, and it’s also no secret (because Nico has made sure it isn’t) that he’s never spent a heat with Lewis.

“Who wouldn’t?” Nico Hulkenberg interjects, and Jenson laughs at the murderous look on Lewis’ face. It only gets worse when Hulk holds out his fist across the table towards Daniel, clearly expecting a bump. Daniel looks a little bashful, but then grins and taps his fist against Hulk’s.

“I thought omegas were supposed to be picky.” Lewis grumbles.

“Nico’s very picky. He might have fucked every single alpha in the paddock, but he hasn’t even touched you.” It might be petty, but it feels good to let Lewis have it. Especially when it bothers him so much.

Sebastian has been listening to the conversation but doesn’t feel the need to butt in. He doesn’t feel the need to assert himself here; he’s happily bonded and quite glad to not have to worry about posturing for some omega’s attention.

“Don’t look so fucking smug,” Lewis suddenly snaps at him. He can’t win with the others, but he might just be able to take some of his frustrations out on Seb. “You’re with your teammate, the most unlikely omega in history, and you’re like the only person he even talks to. That’s not being picky, he’s being convenient!”

Sebastian just smiles softly at him. The conversation happens with some regularity, whenever there’s a careless omega in the paddock there’s a bit of tension among the alphas and Sebastian is somewhat used to it by now. Especially now that he’s officially bonded with his own teammate.

“Well Kimi _is_ picky, he’s with the best.” The smugness on his face knows no bounds. “... and he’s never spent a heat with any one of you, which just makes him even more picky.”

“You sure about that, Seb?” Jenson smirks and Sebastian narrows his eyes.

“I was about to ask the same.” Romain isn’t looking at anyone, speaking to his plate as if the conversation is beneath him. The whole table is quiet until Sebastian stands up, looking down at Jenson.

“Yeah, I’m sure. Why?”

“Nothing,” Jenson says offhandedly, “but you don’t _sound_ sure.”

Sebastian takes his tray and leaves, inwardly cursing himself for letting something so stupid get under his skin. Behind him he can hear some of the alphas laughing. They’re all a bit on edge, acting a little worse than usual, and he knows Kimi has a heat coming in a couple of days... but the scent that’s got them all riled up isn’t Kimi, it’s someone else.

 

\--

 

Pastor thinks it’s kind of nice, being a beta. Really. He doesn’t have to worry about heats, asserting himself to get a mate, or any of the stuff that comes with the alphas and omegas. He also can’t ‘smell’ the others, which feels freeing, considering how the alphas act from time to time when there are omegas around. Not to mention how they act when... urgh. He doesn’t like to think about it, but an alpha who has recently mated apparently smells a certain way, and it brings the other alphas’ backs up. It’s not usually a big problem, their surroundings are full of beautiful, perfectly willing people – getting laid is not an issue. To the alphas however, it seems to be.

He can tell that something is going on from how Romain is acting. The Frenchman is snarky and irritable, his usually kind demeanor gone, and if the cause can’t be found in the car or the race, it’s usually something to do with another alpha or one of the omegas. Pastor just tries to steer clear of him. It’s not worth the trouble to get involved.

Sergio, who is also a beta, asked Jenson once what it’s like. Pastor boiled the explanation down to basically being able to tell when someone is horny, which doesn’t really seem to cover it. He still remembers seeing Jenson, who is usually a nice enough guy, positively _snarling_ at Lewis for getting too close to Rosberg. He’s seen Sebastian absolutely beaming over Kimi paying him even the slightest attention, and the otherwise calm and collected Daniel slam his fist into a wall after being shooed away from Carlos by a protective and rather superior-looking Fernando. It doesn’t seem to be just knowing when somebody wants sex. There seems to be something more uncontrollable about it.

‘Uncontrollable’ seems to fit with the omegas too though. He’s never asked, but he’s heard stories. When they go into heats the will to ‘mate’ is overwhelming, but there’s a period of time before that when they are instinctively trying to find the best possible mate. This is when they start ‘smelling’. He doesn’t quite understand that part of it.

One time he was next to Rosberg on the driver parade, and he’d heard that he was approaching a heat. So he tried to see if Rosberg smelled any different, but couldn’t really tell. While being a beta is certainly convenient, he kind of wishes he could try it, just for a day or so, so he’d know what they were going through. From the outside it’s all a little strange.

He’s heard them though. Through the years he’s shared enough walls with enough alphas and omegas to know how the heats play out. After basically driving the alphas insane and hopefully picking one, they mate. Pastor used to think ‘mate’ was a cruel way of reducing them to something animal, rather than calling the act something more human, like making love or even just having sex. But from the noises he’d have to agree that ‘mate’ is perhaps the most accurate description. It _sounds_ animal. Primitive. Uncontrollable.

Fernando and Carlos walk past outside and Pastor can see Romain tense up, his eyes locked on them like he can’t even stop himself. When the omegas are out of sight it’s like the Frenchman is debating with himself whether to get up and follow them, or stay where he is. After about a minute, his features soften and he sort of relaxes, with a deep breath his shoulders come down a little and even his hair looks less bristled. Pastor thinks it’s nice and simple being a beta.

 

\--

 

“So the rookies have synced up then?” Jenson asks, still waving at the crowds. Fernando hums his agreement. The Brit shakes his head.

“They really should be more careful...” he glances over at Max and Carlos, standing together in their own corner of the parade truck. Sebastian and Kimi are standing nearby, casually talking, but Jenson can see Kimi keeping an eye on the little omegas. Despite the slightly windy day he can still smell the pheromones coming off of them – not heat, not just yet, but close enough to be enticing. Nobody wants to mess with Kimi though, and if anybody did, they’d have to deal with Sebastian as well and _nobody_ wants that.

“Somebody made a mistake with the medication.” Fernando says quietly, still not looking at Jenson, whose wave pauses briefly but then he continues.

“So they’ll have to go through it? Do you know if...”

“No. Carlos says Max has help.”

“And what about Carlos?” Fernando sees him look over to the younger omegas again and his voice is lower and hungrier. The Spaniard snaps his fingers in front of Jenson’s face and the Brit’s attention is back on him in an instant.

“Sorry.”

“You do not look at Carlos like that.”

“Can’t help it.”

“You can try.” Jenson nods and Fernando actually trusts him to not approach Carlos. Jenson wouldn’t go against Fernando, not on something like that. They’re friends and Fernando has never felt unsafe around him, despite him being an alpha. Even with heats and such he’s always had the presence of mind to just remove himself. Any advances of Jenson’s have always been joking. Besides, he would never dare do anything to disrespect Mark.

It’s happened before though, meds getting messed up because of all the time zones and traveling. Usually the affected omega will experience a hormone-spike for a day or so, but if the medication is resumed straight away they can come out of it without going into a full heat. The suppressants really are a godsend.

Fernando goes over to the Toro Rosso-boys and Jenson chances a glance at them again. They both start talking to Fernando and turn their back on Sebastian. Despite being bonded, Seb can still feel the effects of them and the subtle snub makes his eyes narrow, he looks a little put out until Kimi nudges his arm and starts talking to him. Jenson wonders if the two omegas are even aware, or if they just instinctively crossed Sebastian off the list of potential mates.

 

“He smells so good...” Daniel groans as he comes up next to Jenson. He sounds like a starving man who has just caught a whiff of a delicious meal.

“Is he actually going into heat?” Hulk appears next to them, his eyes on the Toro Rosso-drivers and his hands almost automatically straightening his shirt and cap.

“Nah, someone fucked up with their meds, they’ll both be fine in a couple of days.” Jenson waves at the crowd again. Both of the younger alphas perk up.

“Both of them?”

“That’s why it’s so strong then,” Daniel thinks out loud. “Wouldn’t mind getting my hands on that.”

Hulk agrees and they both seem to straighten up, unconsciously both preening a little but also challenging one another. _“Ah, youth,”_ Jenson thinks to himself. Nico sidles over to them, standing so close to Jenson their arms are touching.

“Hey you,” he smiles. All three alphas are looking at him.

“Excuse you, we were talking.” Daniel says, eyeing Nico up and down. The pheromones in the air and the fact that he’s had Nico before is making his heart beat a little faster. Nico looks from Daniel to Hulk, smirking. Their eyes have already started to darken and he decides to shut the situation down.

“Yes, and you are done talking now.”

Hulk says something in German, his smile not matching the harshness of his tone. Nico just keeps smiling at him.

“I look good enough to get away with it though,” he replies in English before turning back to Jenson, cutting Hulk and Daniel out of the conversation.

“You’re a heartbreaker.” Jenson says with a grin. Nico runs his hands through his hair and leans against the railing, sticking his arse out. Some ways away, Daniel groans again.

“Now _that’s_ just cruel.” The Brit comments without looking away. He’ll keep himself in check with Fernando, and by orders around Carlos, but around Nico? No way. He stands a little closer to warn everyone else to stay away.

“I know,” Nico says, not even looking at him. “I want to talk to you, so... my room tonight?”

“Just talk?” The look in the younger man’s eyes could melt the icecaps.

“Maybe.”

 

\--

 

“Just give him the pills.” Jos insists. The doctor looks hesitant and Max just stands there with kind of a vacant look on his face. The sedatives he was given as soon as he came back to his room must be taking effect already.

“He’s too far along for pills this time, it wouldn’t help.” The doctor explains, his eyes going from the boy to his father and back again. “Look, have you considered just... approving someone to help him break his heats?”

“No.” Jos states with finality. “Just put him under then. Let him sleep it off.”

“Dad...” Max says, but his voice is weak and flat. The doctor sighs and gets Max to sit on the bed, the boy moving sluggishly, like he’s extremely sleepy already. He gives Max the shot, and it only takes a couple of seconds for his eyelids to grow heavy. He curls into a ball and falls asleep, breathing slowly.

“The team can help you, there are alphas available to them, and I mean Ricciardo and Kvyat aren’t...”

“No.” Jos’ voice is firm but he keeps it down so Max won’t wake up. There’s no chance of it though, the drugs are so strong a bomb could go off in the room and the young man would probably just keep right on sleeping.

“It would be simpler if we could just...” the doctor pleads. Sedation as a means of heat-control is not a healthy option.

“No,” Jos repeats, “I’m not letting any of those animals get their hands on my boy.”

The doctor sighs and nods. He can’t do anything about the situation; Max isn’t 18 yet and his father is his guardian. It would just be so much better if he would agree to more reasonable treatment.

 

\--

 

Carlos is very happy to be as close with Fernando as he is. He feels like he can learn a lot from him, he trusts him, and it’s not too embarrassing to talk to him about heats and stuff. Carlos can’t even imagine going to his family or a doctor or something to try to talk about that. It’s also a serious bonus that the conversation can be carried out in Spanish; he hates getting the words wrong. Misunderstandings and awkward conversations are two things he just cannot stand, especially not when the subject is this important.

“The doctor says it’s too late for meds. We were cleared to race today but...” Carlos sighs. “You saw them, the alphas could still tell. Me and Max are both going to have heats.”

Fernando nods. Omegas can tell when other omegas are in heat too, it just doesn’t drive them crazy like it does with the alphas. He’s not really close to a heat himself but he knows there’s a good chance they’ll sync up if they spend a lot of time together; despite the suppressants it usually happens.

“So you will stay here for a few days?”

Carlos has already talked to the team. Letting him travel now would mean risking him coming fully into heat in an inconvenient situation, so it costs them less to just keep him in a hotel room for a few more nights.

“... and you are considering..?” It’s interesting that Fernando seems almost more uncomfortable discussing it than Carlos is.

“Is not the first time, it’s just easier to get through it that way.” Carlos says, and Fernando nods again.

“And you want me to..?”

“I don’t know the alphas as well as you do.”

“Are you sure you want to go for a driver, not... someone else?” Fernando asks, and he’s really trying to choose his words wisely. He doesn’t want to come across as too old-fashioned; he isn’t. Casual sex and spending heats together without bonding is perfectly fine as far as he’s concerned. It’s just sometimes alphas can get ideas about that sort of thing.

“It’s just for a heat.”

“You make sure he knows that.” He sounds so stern Carlos has to laugh. He appreciates Fernando’s help with the alphas. Coming in as a new omega he knew there would be advances and it’s nice to have a strong omega like Fernando on your side. Carlos hasn’t felt pressured though. He’s thought about some of the alpha drivers, sure, but not seriously considered them.

“Alright, so... you don’t want anybody who is taken...” Fernando says, mentally taking Sebastian off the list of possible candidates. He thinks for a second and removes Jenson from the list too.

“Do you know anything about Nasr?” Carlos figures another rookie might be a good start. Fernando looks unimpressed.

“Too... macho. Too much...” he can’t quite find the word for it. He settles for saying Nasr would be too easy but expect too much, and hopes Carlos understands.

“Daniel? Same team, handsome...” Fernando says.

“Braces.” Carlos wrinkles his nose. “And don’t suggest Will, he’s too short.”

Fernando huffs, but doesn’t comment.

“Romain?” He tries, but Carlos shakes his head.

“Too French.”

“Lewis?”

“Urgh, no.”

“That leaves Nico and Daniil.” Fernando says with a shrug. “Pick one.”

“That’s all of them?” Carlos is a little shocked.

“Sebastian is taken, so is Jenson, and that’s everyone.”

Carlos thinks for a moment. Dany is his age and doesn’t do too much of that posturing-bullshit. Hulkenberg on the other hand does enough macho posturing for the both of them, but he can kind of back it up with his good looks. He’s never heard of Dany with any of the other omegas, but he’s seen Hulkenberg come on to... quite possibly all of them.

“... or you could get the team to recommend someone else.” Fernando says and Carlos realizes he wasn’t paying attention.

“The team would say to go to Dany.”

“Meh. Still your choice.” Fernando shrugs again. The team wouldn’t dictate a partner for a driver unless they absolutely had to. Suggest? Certainly. Decide? Never.

 

\--

 

“And here I was thinking you just wanted to talk.” Jenson greets when Nico opens the door in just his underwear and a buttoned-down shirt. Nico laughs.

“I was just changing,” he picks up a pair of pants from the bed, shakes them out, and folds them neatly, “and I did say ‘maybe’.” He undoes another button and strides over, putting his arms around Jenson’s neck and kissing him deeply.

“You’re certainly dressed for maybe.” The Brit says when they break apart, his hands still resting on Nico’s arse.

“You seem _really_ unwilling.” Nico says sarcastically.

“With all the rookies running around half in heat today it’s hard to be anything but willing.”

Nico wriggles free from Jenson and lies down on the bed.

“Well don’t let me stop you, if you have rookies to attend to.” He smiles confidently; Jenson’s eyes haven’t left him since he entered the room, so he’s not going anywhere.

“Or you could, you know, attend to me instead.” He spreads his legs a little and Jenson needs no further invitation to join him. After a few attempts at Nico’s shirt-buttons he simply pulls at the garment until the buttons give up and go flying across the room.

Nico isn’t in heat and Jenson thinks to himself that he actually kind of likes that. The sex doesn’t have that edge of necessity and they’re both wholly _present_ for it, and heat or not, Nico is always fucking amazing in bed.

 

They lie together afterwards, Jenson stroking Nico’s back softly and Nico feeling incredibly relaxed. Neither has said anything for a while and the younger man is contemplating how to best go about this.

“Jense? Do you want to keep doing this?” he finally asks.

“What, touching you?” He kisses Nico’s shoulder and puts his arm around his waist.

“No, all of it.”

“You’re asking if I want to keep having sex with you? Because surely you can figure out the answer to that by yourself.” It’s typical of Jenson to have smartass remarks for everything. Nico smirks to himself.

“I want to bond.” Jenson tenses for an instant but then it feels like he relaxes again.

“O... kay...” Nico knew he would be hesitant, so he turns over to look him in the eyes.

“I really like you, Jense. I trust you. We already spend most of my heats together and we’re good outside of that too.” The Brit narrows his eyes at Nico’s words, looking serious.

“If we bond, you’re mine,” he says, and Nico has to smile at the predictability of his alpha nature. Of course that would be Jenson’s first concern.

“All yours.” Nico replies calmly.

“No others.” Jenson says, and it’s not a question.

“No others.” Nico confirms. It seems Jenson expected something different because now he has nothing more to say, he’s just sort of looking at Nico.

“The same goes for you too.” He says, kissing Jenson on the nose. “You’d be all mine.”

“True.” Nico gets on top of him, straddling his hips.

“No others,” he says, moving his hips just so and leaning down to kiss Jenson’s chin. Nico assumes there will be a pause, but he supposes it’s only natural. He’s had longer to think about this.

“No others.” Jenson says remarkably fast, trying to pull Nico closer to get him to kiss him properly. Nico takes hold of his wrists and pins them to the bed, leaning over him and kissing his eyebrow with a teasing smirk.

“And I don’t mind you noticing the little rookie omegas when they’re in heat...” Nico rolls his hips again. “But you don’t lay a hand on anyone but me, you understand?”

“Completely.” Jenson groans, and Nico’s lips crash into his, the kiss is damn near bruising. Nico catches his bottom lip with his teeth and Jenson will deny it to his dying day, but he _whimpers_ , he actually _whimpers_. The sound seems to bring Nico to his senses slightly, but he doesn’t let up on his bite.

“Sorry about your shirt.” Jenson says and smirks as best he can, and Nico has to finally release his lip because he starts laughing.

“It’s one of yours.”

 

\--

 

Carlos doesn’t bother taking the extra pills the team doctor gave him. They would only delay the inevitable, and he doesn’t want to do that. He paces back and forth in his room for a bit, thinking about his options. The heat is coming; he can feel his body working, he’s not wet with slick yet but he will be and his thoughts are already shifting towards mating. He should be fully in heat by tonight. When he wasn’t on suppressants the onset was slower, but that really is the only difference, as far as he can tell. He sends a text to Dany, asking if he’s in his room. The reply comes within seconds.

 _“Yes. Want to do something?”_ Carlos smiles. Yes, yes he does want to do something. He types back a quick _“I’ll be right there”_. If Dany accepts, which he probably will, Carlos will invite him back to his room.

He’s just about to knock on Dany’s door when someone calls out from further down the hall. Looking up he sees that it’s Nico Hulkenberg. He’s coming closer and from the look on his face he has obviously caught Carlos scent, which is even stronger now.

“Dany? Really?” he says with a self-assured smirk, “you can do better than that.”

Carlos knows he’s triggering him. He feels Hulk reacting to him, sees his stance grow more confident and his eyes grow dark and he’s giving off his own, powerfully masculine scent.

“What, like you?” He can’t really help turning around to face him fully, leaning back against the wall. Hulk grins and moves in even closer, putting his hands either side of Carlos’ head. He leans down and breathes in deeply, his eyes closed.

“You smell delicious.” Carlos can feel the heat pulsing inside of him, the presence of this obviously interested alpha is making it harder to think, still... something isn’t quite right. If he was further along he’d probably say yes and submit to the German. Right now he’s just sort of enjoying affecting him like this.

“Good enough to eat...” Hulk’s voice is just a rumble now, low and full of want. Just then the door next to them opens and Hulk backs up a couple of steps in surprise. Dany looks from one to the other and Carlos’ scent hits him like a punch. On instinct he reaches for the omega, who takes his hand.

“Back off,” Hulk growls, but Dany stares him down and pulls Carlos a little closer. Hulk might be bigger than him, but there’s a ferocity in Dany’s eyes the likes of which Carlos has never seen before. The Russian steps out in front of him, getting between him and Hulk.

“You can go now.” His accent is thicker than usual and his voice is threatening. Hulk stares at him for a moment, before looking at Carlos again. Carlos can tell they are quickly approaching a point where this will get really ugly.

“Yes, go.” He says. Hulk looks back to Dany and for a moment Carlos thinks he’s going to attack him or something, but he just points at him menacingly before backing away and disappearing down the hall.

Dany leads the way into his room and goes over to the window, opening it and taking a couple of deep breaths.

“Sorry.”

“For what?”

“Out there, I...” Dany doesn’t know what to say. Part of him wants to apologize for acting like that, being so forward and getting in the way of Carlos and Hulk... but another part of him wants to rip Carlos’ clothes off. Carlos walks over and stands next to him and Dany kind of wishes he wouldn’t because that smell is doing things to him.

“I’m sorry,” he says again, but he’s even less sure why this time.

“You can... you feel... me, right?” Carlos asks and Dany nods. “Good. I... would you...” Suddenly it feels really hard to get the words out. Honestly he thought Dany would be more demanding, more eager. On the contrary he seems to want to get away.

“Do you want to... with me?” Carlos manages, and Dany’s eyes widen.

“I... are you sure?” His sounds so small. The omega has made his decision though.

“I want you.” Carlos chances moving forward and now Dany doesn’t back away. The pheromones are getting to him and his eyes are darkening, his breathing getting slower and heavier.

“I... have... never...” The Russian says.

His body is incredibly willing and his mind is starting to focus only on the delicious scent of this omega, but he’s pushing it back and still holding on because he _can’t_ get it wrong, not with Carlos. He’s practiced control for far too long to fuck up now. Embarrassing encounters where he had much less control of himself spring to mind. Nico calling him ‘cute’ and laughing at him, a horrible press conference with a horrible hard-on from sitting between almost-in-heat Fernando and Roberto, not to mention how Sebastian looked last year when he came flying at Dany for choosing the wrong day to talk to Kimi... no, control is all-important. Carlos raises his eyebrows.

“Really?”

“Not in heat.” Dany tries to explain. “I’ve never... in heat.”

“... do you want to?”

“Fuck yes.” He grits out, unable to look directly at Carlos. This level of wanting is just ridiculous, he thinks, it’s literally thinking with your dick. He is starting to lose it completely, he’s had sex before but he’s never _mated_ and there’s a burning sensation in his stomach at the thought.

“Good. You pack, and come to my room.”

 

Once Carlos is outside the room he takes a couple of steadying breaths before sending a quick text to Christian and Franz, letting them know that Dany will be with him. He takes off his shirt when he gets back to his room, and he closes the windows and pulls the blinds. He’s not worried about it being Dany’s first time; he’s an alpha, he’ll figure it out. In fact, they’ll have a couple of days to figure it all out together.

Dany on the other hand swings the windows open wide and tries to clear the air so he can pack, but he mostly ends up throwing his things randomly into his suitcase and barely squeezing it closed. It’s a total mess, and he doesn’t care one bit. Carlos picked _him_.

 

\--

 

Sebastian gets in the car with a feeling of “finally”. All the press-stuff took forever and he is tired and just wants a shower, a drink, and a bed. Kimi should already be back in their room, maybe he can convince him to give him a back rub? That would be perfect. He’s dreaming away about a nice back rub when his phone rings.

“Hello?”

“... Sebastian.” It’s Kimi. He sounds strange, exhaling Sebastian’s name like that.

“... are you okay?”

“’m fine...” Kimi drawls. There’s a rustle and a little moan. “When are you coming?”

“I’m on my way now. Kimi, what are you doing?” He sounds almost like he’s drunk. There’s another rustle and another moan, louder this time.

“I need you to be here,” the Finn states. “’m in bed and you’re... not here.”

Sebastian sits up and grips his phone tightly as the pieces start falling into place.

“Kimi, you’re not... are you heating?” He tries to count back the days and weeks. Kimi’s not due for a while yet, they should have made it home well before then. Besides, he’s on suppressants so even if he was approaching a heat... Through the phone he hears Kimi chuckle. He sounds further away now and Sebastian realizes the rustling is him moving around in bed. The phone must be on speaker.

“Heating, heating, hot.” Kimi mumbles, moaning again. This isn’t him _approaching_ a heat, this sounds like he’s already there. Sebastian’s cock stirs as he can’t help thinking of his omega, probably naked, in their bed, moving around and moaning at the slightest touch to his over-sensitive body... he bites his lip to not make any inappropriate noises and covers the phone as he asks the driver to please hurry.

“Kimi, you’re not supposed to be in heat yet...”

“S’bastian,” Kimi whines, interrupting him, “I want you to fuck me.”

Sebastian keeps trying to talk to him but saying Kimi has a one-track-mind right now would be the understatement of the decade. He finally makes it back to the hotel and checks with reception; Kimi has already extended their room reservation. So either he already knew it was coming, or he was clear enough to do it when he came back from the track. He sends a message to Britta, asking her to please let everyone know he will be staying for a few days extra. He gets back a short “I know”, which is unlike her. He’ll have to ask about it later though because he knows he won’t be doing too much thinking once he gets in the room.

The door has only just closed behind him when he feels Kimi’s pheromones surround him, the air feels thick with the smell and it’s clouding his senses and making him focus solely on getting his clothes off and finding his omega. It’s an easy enough task because where else would he be? Kimi’s on his back on the bed, naked, stroking his cock with a lazy smile, looking at Sebastian and blinking slowly.

“You came...” he says, running his fingers through the white splattered on his stomach, “and so did I.” He laughs a little at his own joke. Normally Sebastian would have laughed too, if nothing else at how incredibly _stoned_ Kimi sounds, but the room already smells like sex and heat and Sebastian’s mind doesn’t want to talk or laugh, it wants to mate.

Kimi turns over, moving sort of clumsily, and gets up on his knees with his upper body still down on the bed. He’s presenting himself and Sebastian licks his lips. Not running purely on instinct just yet he still means to play safe, so he goes over to his bag to get a condom. Kimi’s so wet his thighs are glistening with slick and lube and prep won’t be necessary. Sebastian swallows hard and blinks a couple of times, he’s about to stop thinking for a while and it’s always a little weird to let go of that last shred of control.

“No.” Kimi says when he spots the condom in Sebastian’s hand. “You, just you.”

“Kimi...” Sebastian warns. The Finn determinedly grabs the foil packet out of his hand and tosses it away.

“Your cock,” he demands. Sebastian growls but Kimi just arches his back even further. “Fuck me.”

Sebastian’s last somewhat coherent thought consists mainly of swearwords as he sheaths himself inside his omega in one thrust. Mating isn’t like sex outside of heats; it’s shorter, more intense, and there’s a lot less thinking involved. Sebastian’s body is completely motivated by the process, by owning, possessing and coming inside this – his – omega again and again, marking him and making sure that any- and everyone knows that this is _his_. Kimi is clawing at the sheets, thrusting back against Sebastian and he lost his ability to form words long ago, reduced to whimpers and moans as a means of pleading for more, for release.

 

It’s the middle of the night and several sessions later when they wake up together and feel somewhat mentally present. The bed is an absolute mess and they both need to shower. Kimi doesn’t bother with getting dressed when he gets up and Sebastian stays in bed, just watching him. He’s beautiful and the way his muscles move when he stretches his back and arms makes Sebastian’s mouth water.

“How long did you book the room for?” he asks, remembering that Kimi must have known the heat was coming. “And did your heat start early? Or did we count it wrong..?”

“Couple of days,” Kimi replies. His voice isn’t as sluggish, but he’s still not quite back to normal; he won’t be all there for another day or so. Clarity will come in short bursts after he’s had his fill of Sebastian and then he’ll want to mate again, until the heat breaks. It usually takes them two or three days to get there.

“Went off the meds,” he continues as Sebastian is getting out of bed. The German will question the motivation for that later. He follows Kimi into the bathroom and steps into the shower with him. The water feels wonderful, washing sweat and come off their skin. It’s powerless against the bite-marks Sebastian has put on Kimi’s shoulders, neck, and back, and does nothing for the bruises from his fingers on Kimi’s hips. Sebastian caresses them lightly and can’t help but let his hand slide over to wrap around Kimi’s cock.

“Did you talk to Britta?”

“Told her we needed to fuck.” Kimi’s eyes are growing dark again, his lips are parted and his breaths are getting shallow. Sebastian groans. He’ll have to give Britta something nice later for putting up with his boyfriend. He leaves the bathroom and only just has time to finish his call to room service with a request for new bed linen and something edible before he’s pushed down onto the bed and pounced on by Kimi.

 

\-- The End --


	2. 2015-2016 (Winter Break)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone is on winter break. It's the perfect time to relax, celebrate the holidays, and spend some quality time with the loved ones. Some people are having a nicer holiday than others however.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't think I've ever felt this jittery about posting anything before, but here goes. TW: abusive behavior/imprisonment.

\- 2015 – 2016 (winter break) -

 

“Mark, do you have..?”

“Yep, here it is.” Mark says, minding his step as he carries the last gift down the stairs. He hopes his sister won’t mind too much that her kids will be getting a rather big and noisy present from their favorite uncles. Hopefully it will make up for them not being around for their birthdays. Besides, who wouldn’t love a huge race track, complete with all the expansion-sets, where the cars can make engine-noises and tire-squeals as they race around?

Mark puts the present down by the others and puts his arm around Fernando. He smiles to himself, thinking that moments like these are worth more than anything.

They always spend the holidays together; it’s been so many years now that they have a standing schedule for it. Every other year they stay in their house in Spain and visit Fernando’s family, and every other year they’re in the house in Australia and spend the holiday with the Webbers. This year they’re in Australia – Mark feels stable, Fernando feels like he’s on vacation, and they both feel relaxed and at home. Most importantly however, they’re together.

Mark’s smile broadens. He hasn’t told Fernando yet but they’ll be seeing a lot more of each other next year. He’s made a little card with his new byline-picture for Channel 4; he’s planning to give it as the last Christmas gift this year and he isn’t even nervous. Fernando’s going to love it.

 

\--

 

_“Feliz Navidad and happy new year!”_

The message is simple and short but it brings a smile to Carlos’ face when he reads it. Things have been good between them since Carlos invited Dany to share his heat, and he’s glad that the alpha has been handling it so well. He doesn’t have that much experience with it but he’s heard stories from Fernando and the others about alphas getting ridiculously possessive, demanding omegas stay exclusive but still refusing to bond... the most possessiveness he’s gotten from Dany so far is a couple of hugs in public, and now a text with well-wishes.

Carlos thinks he’s too young to bond, but he wouldn’t mind sharing another heat with Dany. He didn’t know it was Dany’s first time until the Russian told him, but he was never really worried about it. When Dany came to his room and saw him standing by the bed with his shirt off, Carlos could _see_ his instincts taking over. Dany may have been hesitant and nervous but his body knew what to do. From the time Dany’s eyes turned almost completely black and he growled at Carlos to get on the bed to three days later when they started packing up their things to leave, Carlos never regretted his decision.

He looks up the Russian translation for ‘merry Christmas’ and copy-pastes it into a short reply. He doesn’t think he’s in love, but there’s something about Dany that just feels right. Fernando has already teased him, albeit in good humor, about mercilessly cutting everyone but Dany and ‘the playboy’ from his list of potentials. The older omega had found it particularly funny that Daniel was cut off the list because Carlos had forgotten the Australian no longer had braces. Carlos can’t help it. He can’t see himself with Daniel, and any excuse will do.

 

\--

 

Jenson looks at himself in the mirror and sighs. _Everything_ feels like a bad idea, all topped off by him agreeing to meet Nico’s parents over the holidays. The past week he’s been getting increasingly nervous and at this point he feels about ready to jump out of the window. His suit feels too fancy but the one he changed out of felt too plain. He shaved because he was afraid of looking scruffy, but looking in the mirror now he thinks he looks too young and not serious enough.

It feels strange to be nervous like this, he thinks. In social settings he’s usually very confident and comfortable. When it comes to racing he likes to think his credentials are quite in order, and these days he’s also one of the most well-established alphas in the game. It all adds up and gives him a fair bit of status in his usual circles.

It’s just that to Keke, it probably doesn’t mean a thing. He has met Nico’s father before, but he has never been about to introduce himself as “the guy who’s screwing your son”. He snickers and it sounds a bit manic. As a way of breaking the ice, it’s really bad. As a way of getting his nose broken, a line like that would probably work really well.

 

“Nervous?” Nico asks as soon as he opens the door to his apartment to let Jenson in.

“Eh... yeah. Little bit.”

“You don’t have to be.” He smirks and disappears into the kitchen to put away the whiskey Jenson brought. “Dad is going to love you for this.”

“Enough to accept that I’m bonding with his only son?” Jenson calls after him. It’s a half-joke. God, he can’t stand feeling this jumpy.

“Probably not that much.” Nico shrugs, handing him a glass of wine. Jenson forces himself to take small sips, but the temptation to just sink it is very strong.

“I’m joking, you know.” Nico strokes his arm softly. “Mom and dad like you and I’ve already told them we’re bonding, they don’t have a problem with it.”

Jenson just nods. He has already tried to imagine himself in Keke’s shoes: with a beautiful, successful omega-son who is bringing his boyfriend (someone like Jenson) over for the first official dinner with the parents – after they’ve already started bonding. He didn’t exactly like how it made him feel.

 

Nico keeps reassuring him that everything will be fine. Once his parents arrive, Nico cooks under the watchful eye of his mother, who speaks German to him and English to Jenson. His father talks about racing, happily compliments the whiskey and opens the bottle soon after dinner. He pours two glasses and hands one to Jenson before walking out onto the balcony. Jenson doesn’t need to be told to follow him. Keke lights a cigarette and they stand in silence for a while before he starts talking.

“We raised Nico to know that he is worth the best, that he has choice.” Keke is looking out over the harbor, slowly swirling the amber liquid in his glass. Jenson is sure Nico’s father can hear his heart racing, because it’s the only sound in the world apart from the ice cubes in Keke’s drink clinking around. If he focused on it he could probably hear the cigarette burning.

“If he picked you, that means he thinks you are the best choice.”

“Sir, I...” Jenson can’t remember the last time he addressed anyone as ‘sir’ and he isn’t even sure what he wants to say. He’s actually kind of relieved when Keke turns to him, holding his hand up to get him to stop talking. There is a strong feeling of power and protectiveness coming from him.

“You make sure he doesn’t regret the choice.”

The relief is short-lived under Keke’s steely gaze; the older man doesn’t have to do more than look at him to let Jenson know that if he screws things up with Nico, he’ll be sorry. The Finn takes a sip of his drink, nods once, and then opens the door to go back in.

“Dad...” Jenson hears Nico’s exasperated groan from inside before the younger man comes out onto the balcony. He looks Jenson up and down before taking the glass of whiskey out of his hand and taking a sip.

“Did he threaten to kill you?” he finally asks. Jenson still feels a bit awkward but Nico’s presence is relaxing him. This is his omega and all is as it should be.

“... not really. Well... kind of, I think. If I make you unhappy.”  A smile tugs at Nico’s lips as he puts his arms around Jenson’s neck and pulls him in for a hug.

“See? I told you he likes you.”

 

\--

 

It feels really good to take off the knitted hat and the thick winter jacket. Not that he minds the cold, he doesn’t, but getting the winter clothes off is a clear sign of being home. Home is nice and quiet and above all it doesn’t smell. The past few days he’s been more and more bothered by the smells of other people and he really shouldn’t have gone out today at all, but he didn’t think a quick run to the store would be so bad.

He knows all the tricks for handling heats, keeping scents down, keeping things private. Like most omegas, he’s been on suppressants for years. Unlike most omegas, he goes off the suppressants for about a week every three to four months. The pills make the heats start more abruptly, but going off them makes the heats shorter. While it leads to a slightly more severe heat, it also means it breaks about a day earlier. It’s worth it.

When he signed his first contract he had to divulge his orientation. He made sure there was an air-tight privacy-clause however; if the team or anyone connected to it reveals his status he would practically be entitled to any compensation he would see fit. People guess, some even ask, but he shrugs it off or kills the subject with silence. Since he’s an athlete most people assume he’s an alpha. The ones who think he’s an omega usually only do so because of Kimi. Blonde, blue-eyed, Nordic drivers are always compared to Kimi. Most alphas and omegas assume he’s a beta. He’d like to keep it that way.

Not that he minds being an omega. It’s just that there is a ridiculous amount of focus on orientations and he’d rather keep it private. It’s better than it ever has been though, and he’s grateful. Omegas aren’t required to register anymore, orientation isn’t printed on ID’s and passports, and omegas aren’t barred from certain jobs. Still, if people are going to keep putting absurd amounts of thought into orientations, he’s going to keep putting an equal amount of thought into staying under the radar.

It’s good to get a heat out of the way during the holidays, if you can. He went off his medication three days ago so he’s right on schedule. His heat starts today, and he’ll be done before going to his parent’s for Christmas. He takes a few bottles of water out of the fridge and the ice-bottle out of the freezer. The cool-bag in the bedroom will keep everything chilled enough. He checks to make sure he has a few protein bars and plenty of towels, and puts a clean change of clothes in the bathroom, neatly folded and ready for him when he’s done.

Last of all, he checks the drawer beside the bed. He doesn’t like it, but he has to admit the toys make things easier. When he’s in heat, he doesn’t care. The thought is a little frightening. He thinks of the time out of heat as ‘being sober’. Sober, he wouldn’t let anyone who acts and talks like the alphas in the paddock do from time to time put their hands on him. In heat, he wouldn’t care. It would have been nice to have been born a beta, but Marcus doesn’t really mind being an omega. He can take care of himself.

 

\--

 

“Kimi, no.” Sebastian’s voice is surprised, almost a little shocked.

“Hm?” Kimi’s hand continues up Sebastian’s leg. They are lounging on the couch, watching one of those movies that are always on TV around Christmas-time and Kimi figures it wouldn’t hurt to get some naughty done before they have to play nice in front of their families.

“No.” Sebastian repeats firmly, pushing Kimi’s hand aside. “We’ve decorated. That stuff belongs in the bedroom, not out here where it’s Christmassy.”

Kimi lies down and puts his head in Sebastian’s lap. He’s bored. He has seen the movie before and the family coming over is nice and all but he likes it best when it’s just him and Seb. Slowly, he starts stroking Sebastian’s leg again but soon gets his hand moved away.

“Why can’t I touch you?”

“Because Christmas isn’t for sex, it’s for presents and families and cartoons.” Sebastian says it like it’s the most obvious thing in the world, and Kimi chuckles. It’s not like he was planning to defile the Christmas tree, he just wants to do something a little more exciting than watch cartoons.

“What about the mistletoe?” he asks, “it’s Christmassy.”

“That’s tradition, it’s just for kissing!”

“Fine.” Kimi gets up off the couch and goes to stand under the mistletoe. “Come on.” Sebastian is slightly hesitant, but follows him.

“What are we..?”

“If you’ll only kiss under the plant, kiss me so I can go shower before they get here.”

Sebastian grins happily as he pulls Kimi closer. He’ll get some Christmas spirit out of him yet! Kimi holds on to him and as soon as their lips meet his tongue darts out to press against Seb’s lips and demand entry. The kiss quickly becomes a lot deeper than Sebastian had first intended. Kissing his way across Sebastian’s jaw, Kimi’s mouth moves down and expertly finds _that_ spot on his neck, the one that makes Sebastian melt.

“Kimi...” it's supposed to be chiding but it doesn’t sound it at all.

“Just kissing.” Kimi hums. He slips one hand down between them and gently rubs Sebastian through his jeans. When Sebastian moans Kimi lets him go, looking quite pleased with himself.

“Shower.” He says, walking up the stairs and pulling his shirt off as he goes. Sebastian looks after him and then gives the huge Christmas tree an apologetic glance before following his omega upstairs.

 

\--

 

Hosting the new years-party is definitely his father’s idea of a good compromise, Max thinks. Jos gets to decide who attends and Max gets to have fun in the safety of their home. He can see Jos keeping an eye on him, trying to make sure he doesn’t drink too much, doesn’t have _too_ much fun, and he just wishes he would give it a rest. It’s supposed to be a party!

“Max, come on!” Victor calls out to him. Victor’s dad and Jos are friends and Victor and Max have known each other since they were kids but they’re not really close. Max likes him though; he’s fun to be around and has a very easy-going attitude. He starts making his way over.

“Where are you going?” Of course Jos gets in the way, but Victor is by his side so quickly it’s almost like he knew it was coming.

“We thought we’d get away from the noise for a bit and play cards.” It doesn’t sound all that exciting to Max, but it would mean getting away from his dad for a minute. Jos seems hesitant, but Victor’s dad comes along and claps Jos on the shoulder.

“Come on Jos, let the boys have their fun! Did I tell you about that time when...” he starts pulling Jos away and Max and Victor breathe a collective sigh of relief.

 

It seems a lot of the younger participants wanted to get away from their parents, because soon enough all of them are in the games-room upstairs. Drinks have been smuggled in and the air is a lot lighter as they play cards and joke and talk. With the argument that it doubles their chances of winning, Victor gets Max to sit on his lap so they can team up. They’re doing well and others jokingly adopt the same strategy as the bets go from poker chips to drinks.

Victor has one arm around Max to keep him steady and holds the cards with the other. His hand started low enough, down on Max’s knee, but it keeps sliding higher and it’s making Max’s skin feel hot and making him shiver at the same time. Every time Victor beckons him closer to discuss strategy his breath tickles Max’s ear and somehow it’s making Max feel more drunk.

“I always thought you were so handsome...” Victor’s voice is lower and his hand is on Max’s hip, his thumb stroking back and forth in a hypnotic rhythm. It’s very pleasant, but it makes it a little harder to focus on the cards.

“You smell so nice,” Victor whispers when Max leans close to look at their cards again. He inhales deeply, his nose just behind Max’s ear, and Max can’t understand how he didn’t realize until now that Victor has an after shave or cologne or _something_ that smells incredibly good. In fact, it smells so good he needs to lean in even closer and try to get another whiff of it.

“When are you due?” Victor is still whispering and his words are completely irrelevant. There’s a hot tingling sensation travelling up Max’s spine and it settles at the back of his head and makes him feel all fuzzy inside. He’s staring at Victor who is just smiling up at him.

“It’s almost time! Let’s go!” Someone remembers to check the time and suddenly the room is back. It’s fifteen minutes to twelve, everyone is moving toward the door and Max lowers his hand from Victor’s cheek and stands up, feeling unsteady. He must be much more drunk than he first thought.

They hurry to throw on jackets and shoes and head outside. Most of the guests are already out in the yard looking at the fireworks, toasting, making New Years-resolutions, and wishing each other well. Just after the stroke of midnight Victor moves in really close, and Max gets his first kiss from a boy.

 

\--

 

Nico isn’t a clingy person. He’ll hug and hold hands and such, but he doesn’t need to be glued to somebody’s side to feel right. He’s happy that Jenson is quite the same way. The New Year’s Eve-party is their first real outing as a couple since they started bonding and Nico wanted to see what it felt like. The bonding makes them more in tune with one another and he was a little worried it would lead to Jenson’s protectiveness of him going in to possessive-territory... or that his own instinctive willingness to submit would turn into weakness or an inability to say no to his alpha. As it turns out, he didn’t need to worry.

Jenson is across the room, basking in the attention of a young, slender brunette who is laughing at everything he says and keeps touching him when they talk. The Brit is running his hand through his hair now and then and is standing with his feet apart, leaning in to the conversation. An alpha displaying how stable he is, showing confidence, being in control. It’s quite a pleasing sight. If he didn’t know Jenson he’d certainly _want_ to get to know him.

Still, Nico has noticed that Jenson keeps glancing his way, keeping an eye on him. He turns around and relaxes against the bar and realizes that even through the alcohol, the music, the other people and all their smells, he can feel Jenson coming closer.

“Enjoying yourself?” he asks when Jenson comes up next to him, kissing him on the cheek.

“Just thought I’d come over and check on you. I saw you looking.”

“You look very nice tonight.” He gives Jenson a short kiss and can see the girl he was talking to earlier looking at them. Something about the look on her face makes him feel good. He never felt threatened by her, but it still feels good to show her that this is _his_ alpha.

“Where you getting a little jealous?”

“Jealous? No. You can work up an appetite wherever you like,” he says with a confident smile, running Jenson’s tie through his fingers. Jenson licks his lips and his smile makes Nico feel weak at the knees. “... as long as you come home to me to eat.”

“How could I ever say no to a feast like you?” Jenson’s voice is low and his hand presses against the small of Nico’s back, pressing him close.

Nico kisses him again. He’s happy. It took him a while to come to the conclusion that Jenson would be a perfect mate for him. Rather, it took him some time to reach that conclusion intellectually. He felt there was something special between them long ago, probably around the first time he invited Jenson to share a heat with him. He never wanted to pick a mate on feelings alone though, because falling in love is a thoughtless act and feelings can fade. But they balance each other well and the bonding, despite not being completed, is only drawing them closer.

 

\--

 

Nico Hulkenberg wakes up on the first of January and the way his eyes can’t really focus it’s safe to say he’s still drunk. Carefully, he moves away from the girl sleeping next to him – Sarah? Selma? Something – and finds his clothes. His phone is completely out of battery, which is just too fucking typical. He slowly makes his way outside and is glad he decided to go to a party in the city, because it doesn’t take him two minutes to find a cab to take him home.

The ride home is just long enough that he starts feeling hung over rather than drunk. He feels a little car-sick, his clothes seem to smell worse and worse, and he’s _hungry_. Finally in his own apartment he plugs his phone in to the charger. It instantly starts pinging in messages he’s missed – delayed well-wishes for the coming year, probably. He leaves them for later and microwaves a semi-healthy instant meal and scarfs it down while standing in the kitchen before making his way to the bathroom. One much-needed shower later he feels almost human again and flops down on his own bed.

The texts are indeed mostly from people wishing him a happy new year, but one of the senders catches his eye. He hasn’t received anything from that particular sender in a really long time.

_“Happy New Year! Hope you have a good year, but not too good. Get lots of rest! ;)”_

It invites questions. Nico quickly composes a reply.

_“Happy New Year back! Was just about to sleep. Why not wish me the best year? Don’t like me anymore? ;)”_

He is just starting to fall asleep when the phone beeps with a new text.

_“Don’t want you to beat me on track lol. Rest is good you might need it... ;)”_

Nico smirks at the message and puts his phone on silent. He knows he just got information that hasn’t been officially released, but he would never spread it around. He falls asleep with a smile on his face, thinking about a certain Mexican omega he hasn’t had the pleasure of hooking up with in much too long.

 

\--

 

The first day of the new year Max wakes up late and has a completely expected hangover. He tries to drink plenty of water and takes some paracetamol but he still feels warm and a bit tender all over, like there’s a fever brewing. The day after that he wakes up feeling about the same. He must be coming down with something. Oh well, at least he’s still on holiday. If he needs a few days in bed, now is the best time really.

He goes down to the kitchen with his sights set on a bottle of lemonade and maybe some fruit or a snack that he can take with him upstairs. As soon as he crosses the threshold his father, sitting at the kitchen table, raises his head and looks at him questioningly. His eyes quickly scan the calendar on the wall where Max’s heats are marked with red dots. He is due one over the holiday, but not for another week. He hates the calendar, hanging there for anyone to see. It doesn’t take a genius to work out what the dots mean after all.

“It’s just a cold or something, dad, I’m fine.” Max tries to be proactive; he hates discussing this stuff with his father.

“The way you stink?” Jos scoffs, getting up and grabbing Max by the chin. He moves his head side to side, checking his eyes. “You’re early.”

“I’m just coming down with something...”

There’s a glint of something harsh in Jos’s eyes, he has just comprehended something and Max is sure that whatever it is, he’s not going to like it. He bows his head.

“What happened at the party, Max? Did you let someone... touch you?” there’s a sternness to Jos’s voice that’s usually reserved for far worse fuckups than Max feels this is. He doesn’t really want to, but he tells his father that Victor kissed him. His father’s anger is palpable and getting worse and worse as he explains what happened. Max hates how it makes him cower instinctively, how it makes him feel like he should be begging for forgiveness on his bare knees.

“You...” there’s a vein in Jos’s forehead that looks like it’s ready to pop and Max can see the muscle in his jaw working. “He’s an alpha, and he has fucking triggered you.”

“Triggered?” Max is confused. He supposes the way Victor was acting could kind of fit, but they’ve never really talked about their orientations and they certainly haven’t talked about sex and that stuff. Besides, Victor said he smelled nice, and that can’t be right because his father is an alpha and he’s always told him he stinks when he’s close to a heat.

“You’re going into heat a little early. Nothing to worry about.” Jos is back to using that calm, superior tone, the one that doesn’t invite questions. “Just go to your room.”

 

\--

 

Neither Jenson nor Nico noticed the photographer snapping pictures of the party-goers on New Year’s Eve. Not until a few days later when the pictures of them kissing end up in a glossy gossip-magazine. The bonding is only speculated about and hinted at, because they’ve only told their families and closest friends, but still. Both of their orientations are well known, and the pictures leave very little room for guesswork. A PR-person from Mercedes calls to ask if Nico has any statements he’d like to make, or if he wants to get in touch with legal to sue the magazine. He says no to both.

“Well it was bound to happen, sooner or later.” Jenson says, putting the magazine aside and taking a sip of his tea. He doesn’t seem too bothered by this, and Nico finds that it calms him.

“What will McLaren say?”

“They can say whatever the hell they like,” Jenson chuckles, “because my contract says I ‘mate and bond at my own discretion’.”

“I have that too.” Nico nods slowly. It was important to him to get it in writing that nobody can meddle in that part of his life. Some of the bigger, older teams can be a bit particular about that.

“Then we definitely don’t have anything to worry about as far as that stuff is concerned. Besides, what can this rag,” Jenson gives the magazine a sharp poke, “or your team possibly do to me that would be scarier than your dad?” Nico bursts out laughing. All the tension and worry is gone, like it never existed.

“Come here.” Jenson hugs him close when he has settled down and Nico suddenly feels so safe and warm, like nothing in the world could make trouble for him here.

“I love you.”

Nico pulls back a little, looking up at Jenson, who looks back at him with surprise written all over his face. Nico knows he loves Jenson but he has held back on saying the words – both because of alphas in general and Jenson in particular – and Jenson has never said it before.

“I love you too.” Nico replies, smiling brightly. When they kiss he feels a strumming sensation in his chest. If he had known it would be like this, he would have asked Jenson to bond much sooner.

 

\--

 

Lewis snarls and closes his browser window, still waiting for Toto to pick up his goddamned phone. He was having a good break, feeling good about things, and then _this_...

“Yes?”

“He’s _bonded_?!” Lewis says without any introduction. Toto must have seen that it was him calling anyway, and he’s angry. He stands up and starts pacing. “He’s fucking bonded, outside the team? Did you know about this?”

“Well, I...”

“Who gave him the right?” Lewis interrupts.

“Lewis, calm down.” Toto placates. “Nico is free to...”

“The fuck he is!” It dawns on him that the bonding isn’t news to Toto and he stops pacing. “You already knew.”

“Yes I did.” Toto sighs. “It started last year but he wanted to keep it quiet, so we kept it quiet.”

“Last year?!” his voice is shrill. “I thought you wanted to keep that in the team?”

“That would have been... preferable...” Toto chooses his words very carefully. He thought this might cause waves at some point, but a full-scale tsunami is completely unnecessary. Having unbonded alphas and omegas as teammates is usually something to be avoided, but the PR-department always said that the sometimes quite volatile chemistry between Lewis and Nico was good. Sellable. A bonding between the two of them has been speculated about so many times Toto has lost count. At one point he thought it might even have been a possibility, but that was long ago.

“Lewis, you don’t even like each other.”

Lewis only just stops himself from saying that that is beside the point. He knows it would sound bad, but he has always thought of Nico as his. Certainly he’s more his than anyone else’s. Definitely more than...

“Lewis, is this going to be a problem between you two?” Toto’s tone has gone from pacifying to managerial – he’s back in boss-mode.

“No. No not at all.”

The call ends soon after, and Lewis isn’t sure if he has lied or not. The thought of Nico bonding with someone else bothers him, but now that he has calmed down a little he can’t really say what the actual problem is. They spend a lot of time together during the racing season, but he and Nico have never mated. Their encounters all happened in their teens, apart from a couple of drunken kisses and even that is ancient history by now.

Maybe it’s just that Nico got there first? That he found somebody and made it work? If he’s honest with himself, he always thought it would be easier. Nicole was a beta and they made it work for a while, but he never felt the connection, that sense of relief that goes all the way to the bone that he’s felt when mating. Then again he was heartbroken when they split up, which he’s never really been with any omega he’s been with. He’s been down about it, sure, but there was always a feeling of ‘plenty more fish in the sea’.

He supposes now there’s one less fish in the sea after all. Toto is right though, he and Nico haven’t been close for a long time. But part of him always thought Nico might be waiting for him. He wouldn’t have cared about the others. He would have accepted the past if Nico had wanted to bond with him.

 

\--

 

Max sighs and sits down on the bed, flinching at the sound of the door being locked from outside. The room used to be a walk-in closet but now it’s an extra bedroom that only ever gets used when Max is in heat. There’s a door to the small bathroom that connects to Max’s bedroom, but Jos will already have locked the door. There are biscuits and some chocolate bars in the nightstand and his mother will put food just inside the door when he’s asleep. Max will be in here for a couple of days, as usual, and he fucking hates it.

He can’t help but think about the argument that will probably start soon downstairs. His father will be yelling at his mother, like it’s her fault he is what he is. Like it’s her fault she was born a beta and didn’t provide Jos with a strong, acceptable alpha for a son.

Triggered. He has no idea what it means. He guesses something Victor did must have gotten his heat started. Maybe it was the kiss? But he has kissed girls and that didn’t start anything. He has even had sex, and it didn’t make him go into heat. Maybe it’s because Victor is a boy? Maybe it’s something alphas can do? That would be just great, he thinks cynically, one more way alphas have power over him. His dad is right, as an omega he has to be careful, but there has to be a better way than this.

His mind is getting cloudy, it’s coming on so fast now, much faster than usual and he hates it. With a sigh, he gets undressed and lies down on the bed. He won’t touch himself, not yet. He’ll wait until he’s not thinking. It doesn’t help that much anyway. It’s like being incredibly hungry, starving even, but there’s absolutely no food – and jerking off is like drinking a glass of water. There must be a better way to deal with this. Mating _can’t_ be worse than this, regardless of what his father says.

Getting up to go to the bathroom he feels the wetness has just started to trickle out of him. He wipes it away furiously, he hates it. It ends up everywhere and it smells so _animal_. The bed has a protective sheet so it will be fine, but Max will be uncomfortable and wet. He lies back down with a huff and gives his half-hard cock a couple of rough strokes.

The cloudiness is instantly worse and his thoughts are full of dirty things. He pushes the sheet between his legs, holding it between his feet and pulling it taut with his hands, rutting mindlessly against the stretched fabric. He moans out loud and thinks about sitting in Victor’s lap, the way he smelled, how it felt when they kissed, and he wishes Victor was there.

He rolls over a little, raising his hips so his ass is in the air because it just feels _right_. Holding the sheet stretched with one hand and reaching behind himself with the other he spreads himself, shows himself, and the Victor in his mind smiles filthily at him from the foot of the bed.

“Yes, please, oh yes, yes please...” He’s sweating, leaking slick, crying, and coming. Everything is wet and disgusting. He’s disgusting.

When his heat breaks three days later, he sits in the shower after scrubbing himself clean so he’ll stop _stinking_ and promises himself to try mating next time. It can’t be worse than this.

 

\--

 

“Te... Mark...”

Mark stirs at the sound of Fernando’s voice, but ends up just turning over and going back into deep sleep after a few seconds.

“Mark...” Fernando paws at his chest, his hands a little clumsy with sleep and heat. He doesn’t like to wake up to it, when the line between normalcy and heat gets blurred by slumber and he can’t consciously prepare for the haze.

“Mark, please...” When Mark stirs again Fernando is rubbing himself against his leg, moaning wantonly.

“Nando, what...” his senses all kick into high gear at once. The air in the bedroom is already thick with Fernando’s scent and the pheromones are sending Mark’s sleepy mind reeling. “Fucking hell.”

Fernando’s hand snakes in through the leg of his boxers and starts massaging his cock. Between the touches and the wonderful smell of heat it only takes Mark a second to get fully hard. He doesn’t need to see his omega to know what he looks like right now; his eyes half-closed and so dark they’ll look almost black, his lips parted and wet. He’s all uncoordinated movements and want. Mark takes a steadying breath. He can’t let go, not just yet.

“Nando, slow down, take it easy.”

“No talk,” Fernando whines, catching Mark’s leg between his thighs and grinding against him. Mark can tell he’s rock hard and leaking pre-come, but he still has his underwear on.

“Okay, no talking, but we have to get these off you.” Mark tries to get out of Fernando’s grip so he can get his clothes off. He looks down and meets his omegas eyes, seeing nothing but lust.

“No, te quiero... want you.” Fernando’s words are slurred and his hold on Mark’s leg tightens.

_“Fine,”_ Mark thinks. If Fernando is beyond listening, he’s done talking. He pushes himself over on his side, forcing Fernando down on his back and pushing his leg down against him.

“Ah, si...” his mate hisses, throwing his head back. He’s gorgeous like this but Mark is intent on getting control of his omega so he can claim him, not just look at him. It takes him a few attempts to get free of Fernando’s legs and the Spaniard whimpers at the loss of contact.

“I know, I know.” Mark puts his hand on Fernando’s chest, holding him down a little. He loves how he gets so demanding and so... physical, it means he doesn’t have to hold himself back either. “Let’s get these off.”

He pulls off Fernando’s underwear and the omega almost howls when Mark takes his cock in his hand, stroking it firmly.

“Aparea-... con... por favor...” He spreads his legs. “... ahora.” His underwear is damp with slick and that enchanting scent is overpowering, Mark throws the boxers aside and forces Fernando’s legs even further apart, growling at the sight before him.

It only takes a couple of strokes before Fernando dissolves into panted moans and then wails out loud, come spilling hotly over Mark’s hand. The heat makes the omega very sensitive to touch but his cock hasn’t softened at all and he won’t be satisfied until he’s properly mated, his own release secondary to that of his alpha.

“Please... now. Now.”

“You ready?” Mark pushes Fernando’s legs back and honestly doesn’t know if he could stop himself, he’s surprised he’s this articulate. His cock throbs as he slides his hand down, Fernando’s slick coating his fingers as he probes his mate. So open, so ready. Mark lets go, stops thinking, his only desire to be inside his mate.

“Hacerlo... ahora.” The position isn’t ideal, Fernando’s legs are bent back a little awkwardly and Mark hasn’t gotten his own boxers off completely, but neither one of them cares. Fernando is pliant and Mark can pound into him as he wishes and just take him, the first mating of the heat always the one most driven by sheer need. Comfort can wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is all in good fun, as per usual. Thanks for the read! Comments are much loved and appreciated! <3

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are much loved!  
> As usual, this was all in good fun. Thank you so much for the read! :)


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